Waterproof garment



June 21, 1949. E. WELCH WATERPROOF GARMENT Filed March 29, 1946 IN VENTOR.

TVZeZa Patented June 21 1 949 WATERPROOF GARMENT Edward Welch, Valley:Falls, R. I.

Application March 29, 1946, Serial No. 658,314

2 Claims.

My'invention relates to improvements in water repellent garments and isin certain respects an improvement on my Patent No.-2,321,116, patentedJune 8, 1943, whether said invention be used as an outdoorrain coat oran indoor water repellent coat :such asan apron.-

.A main object of my invention is to provide a structure which willprevent the gutters shown in said prior patent from dripping when suchdripping is not desired-by the wearer for any reason. Thus, if thewearer desires to Wear a rain coat which he has been using outdoors,indoors for a short while he'may change the water gutters into waterreservoirs at will and change the water reservoirs baek to gutters whenhe so desires. This is desirable where the user desires to use his raincoat while making a temporary call indoors while therain drippings arestill seeping downwardly anddoes not wish the d-r-ippings to wet thefloor while making the short call indoors. This device may also be usedwhen the-rain coat is hung up initially to dry after use when-thereservoirs may be changed into gutters and run out down the sink orotherwise-or it may, as in the embodiment shown be used indoors such asby a housewife in washing dishes at a sink as shown with a waterrepellent garment or rain coat such as the water repellent apron shown.When my invention is used asanapron, it is of the type shown in saidpatent. It is clear that the gutters and spouts will prevent any rainwater from dripping over the legs and feet-of the wearer as shown insaid patent, but I have found that housewives often prefer to have adevice which may at their pleasure provide water holding'reservoirs sothat none of the water from washing dishes will "be dropped on thekitchen .floor.

A further object of my invention therefore, is to provide a device forindoor or outdoor use in which the gutters may be changed intoreservoirs and back from reservoirs into gutters and both entirelydispensed with at the pleasure of the operator and for this purpose Imerely provide a supplemental set of separable fastener elements foreach gutter one of which is mounted on the spout and the other of whichis mounted immediately above the spout at a spaced distance below theseparable fastener elements at the upper ends of the gutters at thefront and rear of the wearer to change the gutters into reservoirs whenfastened together.

These and such other objects of my invention as may hereinafter appearwill be best understood from a description of the accompanying drawingswhich illustrate an embodiment thereof adapted particularly for use as ahousewifes apron.

In the drawings, Fig. 1 is a perspective view of my improved garment inattached position on a lady washing dishes in front of a sink with thegutters shown in my former patent upturned to form reservoirs to collectthe drops of water that splash from the sink and prevent them fromdrippingdown over her legs and feet and additionally with thespoutsupturned and fastened to provide reservoirs for catching all splashes ofwater and preventing them from dropping on the kitchen floor.

.Fig. 21-is a plan view of a garment comprising an apron equipped withmyinvention and spread outin open position illustrating the left handgutter with the spout in open position'and the right hand gutter withthe spout in a raised attached position providing a reservoir.

Fig. 3 is a sectional-view taken along the line 33 of Pig. '2 andillustrating the device functioning as a gutter and spout;

Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken along the line ttof Fig. 2 illustratingmy device functioning as a reservoir.

In the drawings, wherein like characters of reference generallyind'icatelike parts throughout, idgenerally illustrates a garment constructed inaccordance with my invention.

As stated, I have shown my invention in use asan apron to be usedindoors and to providea device which will catch the drops-of watersplashed over the sink on the wearer while washing'dishes and remove itin gutters in the manner shown in my prior patent away from the wearerslegs, shoes and stockings, or at her pleasure form said gutters intoreservoirs for temporarily holding thedish washing drippings. Thegarment is provided with the usual lower edge f2 and it is apparent thatthe apron shown has a usual split '22 at 0 the rear thereof.

I provide a spout forming portion 24 projecting downwardly centrally-ofeach side thereof, preferably as shown of hemi-circularshape and pref-.erably also as shown, constructed as an integral part of the'body of thegarment. It is apparent, therefore, that the spouts 24 may bereadilymade in the initial 'cutof the garment, although, if desired, they maycomprise separately attached pieces.

I also provide vertically aligned cooperating detachable 'male .andfemale fastening means secured'to the lower portion of the garment inthe manner to be described. These male and female fastening means maycomprise buttons and button-holes, but I preferably employ cooperatingmale and female separablefastening elements for this purpose as they areeasier to attach and more positive in their holding action. I preferablyemploy eight different sets of separable fastener units, 26, 28, 30, 32,34, 36, 38 and 48, each comprising a male element and afemale element,eta, respectively. While the position of the male and female elementsmay be reversedif desired, in the embodiment shown I preferably employthe male separable fastener elements along the lower edge 3 of thegarment and the vertically aligned female separable fastener elements,above them. I preferably also employ cooperating male and femaleseparable elements 28 m and 28 having walls 42 (see Fig. 3) exterior ofsaid garment adapted to abut when fastened to space apart portions ofthe garment fastened thereby to provide the open top portions 44 of thedownwardly inclined gutters 46 to be described. Certain of saidelements, in the embodiment showing the male fastening elements, aresecured in spaced relationship adjacent the lower edge of the garmentadjacent the center portion of the front thereof and other elements inspaced relationship adjacent the center portion of the rear thereof, inthe embodiment shown adjacent each side of the split 22 thereof and oneach side of each spout forming projection 24, thus the male separablefastener elements being mountd on each side of one spout formingprojection 24 and the separable male fastener elements being mounted oneach side of the other spout 24 on the opposite side of the garment. Thecooperating vertically aligned separable fastener elements, in theembodiment shown the female separable fastener elements adjacent eachcenter portion of the front and rear thereof, are secured to the garmentat a substantially greater vertical distance above their cooperatingfastener elements than are the cooperating female separable fastenerelements on each side of each respective spout 24 so that when the lowerportions of said garment between said splits and spouts, namely theportions 48 between the front and spouts 24 and the portions 50 betweenthe rear split 22 and spouts 24 are outturned, upturned and fastened tothe garment, raincatching gutters 48 and 55 having open rain receivingtop portions 44 are provided downwardly inclined from each centerportion in the front and rear of said garment to each spout portion 24at the side of the garment and the spout forming portions 24 aresimultaneously raised by the lifting of said portions 48 and B upwardly,to a substantially horizontal position, as shown at 24' in Fig. 3,discharging the water from said inclined gutters it and 50 laterally ofthe wearers shoes and clothes, as shown in Fig. 1 of said patent at 52.Fig. 1 also illustrates how the water 54 abuts the surface of thegarment and discharges downwardly as at 56 into the gutters 48 and 552to be discharged thereby laterally of the garment as at 52. While Ipreferably show the projections 24 of hemi-circular shape, it is obviousthat they may be constructed of any shape suitable to provide suitablespouts. So much of my invention hitherto described is inherent in thestructure shown and described in said Patent No. 2,321,116.

I will now describe the improvements shown in this application wherebythe gutters 48 and 50 may be selectively changed at the pleasure of thewearer into the reservoirs 66 frusto conical in inverted section forholding a relatively small amount of water at each side of the garment,but of an ample size to catch all the drippings 54 normally present inwashing dishes or the drippings of water from a raincoat worn outsideafter the wearer has temporarily come inside. For this purpose I attachtwo sets of separable fastener units 52 comprising one element 64 oneach spout and a cooperating element 66 at a spaced distance above eachspout. While these elements may comprise any suitable separable fastenerelements such as buttons and buttonholes, in the embodiment shown I haveillustrated the element 64 on the spout as comprising a male separablefastener element and the element 56 above the spout as comprising afemale separable fastener element, although the position of the male andfemale elements may be reversed if desired. The fastener elements 66 arelocated a spaced distance below that of the fastener elements at theupper ends of the gutters 48 and 50 in front and rear of the wearer.

It is apparent that I have provided a garment or raincoat which may beworn indoors or out of doors and in which the device may be used toprovide the downwardly projecting gutters 48 and 5B inclined downwardlyto central spouts 24 at each side of the garment to discharge thedrippings away from the shoes and lower garments of the wearer or may bechanged into the reservoirs 60 at the pleasure of the wearer to preventthe drippings from dropping on the floor. It is obvious that with thischangeability of function of the lower ends of the depending skirtportion of the garment, that the wearer has her choice of how to use thegarment, but that with all possible uses of the garment, when the loweredge is upturned, the garment functions to prevent water from droppingover the feet and shoes of the wearer.

It is apparent, therefore, that I have provided a novel type of garmentwhich may be worn in the heaviest rains and which will positivelyprevent the rain from falling over the lower garments and shoes of thewearer or which may at the wearers pleasure be worn indoors to preventdrippings from dish washing water or other drippings from dischargingover a water repellent surface on to the feet and lower garments of thewearer and which also at the wears pleasure may be rapidly transformedinto reservoirs for preventing any water at all from dripping from thegarment on to the floor whether immediately after its use outdoors inthe rain or while being used in the house, with the other advantagesdescribed above.

It is apparent, therefore, that I have provided a single garment whichhas both the advantages of a raincoat and an apron and which can be usedinterchangeably if desired, thereby dispensing with the necessity forpurchasing two garments when one can be applied to such a large varietyof uses.

It is understood that my invention is not limited to the specificembodiment shown and that various deviations thereof may be made withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. A waterproof garment having a depending skirt having a lower edgehaving substantially hemi-circular spout forming portions projectingdownwardly centrally of each side thereof and vertically alignedcooperating male and female separable fastener elements having wallsexterior of said garment adapted to abut when fastened, to space apartportions of the garment connected thereby, secured to the lower portionof said garment, certain of said elements being secured in spacedrelationship adjacent the lower edge of said garment adjacent the centerportions of the rear and front thereof, on said spout formingprojections and on each side of each spout forming projection and thecooperating vertically aligned separable fastener elements adjacent eachcenter and end being secured at a substantially greater verticaldistance above their cooperating elements than are the cooperatingseparable fastener elements for the spouts and the cooperating separablefastener elements on each side of said spouts and the cooperatingseparable fastener elements for the spouts being secured at asubstantially greater vertical distance above their cooperating elementsthan are the cooperating separable fastener elements on each side ofsaid spouts so that when the lower portions of said garment between saidcenter portions and spouts are outturned, upturned and fastened to saidgarment except at the spouts, water catching gutters having open waterreceiving top portions are provided downwardly inclined from each centerportion to each spout portion and the spout portions are raised upwardlyto a substantially horizontal position discharging the water from saidinclined gutters laterally of the wearers shoes and clothes and whensaid spout separable fastener elements are fastened water catchingreservoirs of inverted frusto triangular shape are provided betweenfront and rear ends of said gutters for temporarily holding amounts ofwater.

2. A waterproof garment having a depending skirt having a lower edgehaving spout forming portions projecting downwardly centrally of eachside thereof and vertically aligned cooperating male and femalefastening means secured to the lower portion of said garment, certain ofsaid means being secured in spaced relationship adjacent the lower edgeof said garment adjacent the center portions of the front and rearthereof and on each side of and on each spout forming projection and thecooperating vertically aligned separable fastening means adjacent eachcenter portion being secured at a substantially greater verticaldistance above their cooperating fastener means than are the cooperatingfastener means for said spouts and on each side of said spouts and thecooperating separable fastener means for the spouts being secured at asubstantially greater vertical distance above their cooperating fastenermeans than are the cooperating fastener means on each side of saidspouts so that when the lower portions of said garment between saidcenter portions and spouts are outturned, upturned and fastened to saidgarment, water catching gutters having open water receiving top portionsare provided downwardly inclined from each center portion to each spoutportion and the spout portions are raised upwardly towards asubstantially horizontal position discharging the water from saidinclined gutters laterally of the wearers shoes and clothes and whensaid spout separable fastener elements are fastened water catchingreservoirs of inveretd frusto triangular shape are provided between theends of said gutters for temporarily holding amounts of water.

EDWARD WELCH.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,181,891 Hulbert May 2, 19162,321,116 Welch June 8, 1943

